Twelfth Sunday after Pentecost – August 31, 2025

 

Introduction

  • This past Wednesday three things that happened that underscore a triad of malign realities in our fallen world: death, darkness, deception. Today we’re going to talk about them.

Death: the untimely passing of Mark and Vickie Spelts

  • Mark and Vickie were friends to many of us. Both were killed suddenly when the plane they were flying crashed in Missouri. Their loss is devastating.
  • Death has been called a “damned obscenity.” It goes back to our origins story in the Garden (Genesis 2 and 3). But Jesus came to destroy it (2 Tim 1:9-10; Col 2:13-15).
  • Now death is a dead man walking (Rev 20:14).
  • How do we respond to death now? We grieve ours and other’s losses. But we stand in the assurance of eternal life in Christ. Because Mark and Vickie had a personal, trusting relationships with Jesus Christ, we rejoice they are now with our Savior and will return with him to the earth to enjoy eternal life on a recreated earth.

Darkness: the diabolical shooting in Minneapolis

  • What does the face of darkness look like? This week, it looks like Robin Westman, who opened fire on a worshipping school community at Annunciation Catholic Church killing 2 children, injuring 15 others along with 3 adults. This is diabolical evil.
  • There are dark powers at work in our world, and they seek ways to ensnare us and turn us against God. And some people give themselves over to these powers, bit by bit, until they are more demonic than human (2 Tim 3:1-5).
  • In contemporary western culture, we’ve created the perfect Petrie dish for cultivating these kinds of individuals, with our unique blend of secularism, anti-theism, personal freedom and autonomy.
  • CS Lewis wrote in The Abolition of Man: “In a sort of ghastly simplicity we remove the organ and demand the function. We make men without chests and expect of them virtue and enterprise. We laugh at honor and are shocked to find traitors in our midst. We castrate and bid the geldings be fruitful.”
  • Thankfully, this insanity will end. He will eradicate all evil at the coming of Jesus. The dark powers will be judged and quarantined forever.
  • What do God’s people do in the meantime? We combat evil in our own lives through the power of the HS. We battle it on the cultural level through powerful intercession and through political involvement, insisting on just, compassionate public policy.

Deception: the exposure of the “Kingdom of God Global Church”

  • On Wednesday, the FBI raided the offices and residences of the “Kingdom of God Global Church” run by “Apostles” David Taylor and Michelle Brannon. A ten-point indictment accuses them of money laundering, human trafficking and forced labor. All told, he has raked in around $50M.
  • We should lament that charlatans like these two can worm their way into the body of Christ and wreak havoc among vulnerable believers. And we should celebrate and praise God when they get busted. But we should not be surprised (Matt 7:15-17).
  • How should God’s people respond to spiritual fraud? With outrage. Jesus hated the hypocrisy and greed of the Pharisees. We should also be on high alert: we want to be very protective of each other, especially of our kids, younger Christians and others who are extra vulnerable to spiritual scam artists.

Takeaway

Death, darkness and deception are tragic realities in our present fallen world. When Jesus returns, all of them will be obliterated. Until then, Jesus has given us all we need to live full, abundant lives. He has destroyed death. He has disarmed the dark powers. And he has given us discernment through his Word and Spirit to recognize and resist spiritual deception.